Frankenmuth: Hands off our 55-foot cross in park

FRANKENMUTH, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan city is telling critics that it won’t remove a 55-foot cross from a public park.

Frankenmuth, a popular tourist destination, says the cross was erected to celebrate the bicentennial of the United States in 1976. Attorney Richard Thompson says the cross also celebrates Frankenmuth’s own history and culture.

Mlive.com (bit.ly/R13hvE) says Frankenmuth asked Thompson and the Thomas More Law Center to respond to a Washington group, Americans United for Separation of Church and State. The group says the cross is an illegal public endorsement of religion.

The church-state group says it’s disappointed but not surprised by Frankenmuth’s response. It will file a lawsuit if a resident steps forward to be the plaintiff.